Exception to the Rule
by iluvfairytail
Summary: Laxus has always been a lady's man, but when he develops feelings for Freed, one of his closest friends, he doesn't know how to cope. Can he accept this unexpected change of heart before he loses Freed for good? (Shonen Ai/Yaoi - Rated M for language and suggestive adult content)


Laxus liked women. No, he **loved** women. He loved their soft features and the graceful curve of their bodies from the toned tightness of their asses to the supple, soft roundness of their breasts. He especially enjoyed sex with women, how it felt to move inside her tight warmth, that feeling of complete domination as he set the pace, and the satisfaction of bringing her to the edge of reason, allowing them both to lose all semblance of control. Yes, Laxus was utterly and completely attracted to women.

From cute and naïve Lucy and angelic-faced but demonic-minded Mirajane to the sensual, fun Cana and straight-laced but stunning Erza, there certainly was not a lack of attractive women in Fairy Tail. Recently, it was one individual who had caught Laxus' undivided attention. With long, silky green hair, noble profile and flawless complexion along with a stern and intelligent, yet obsessive and endearing personality, they were someone Laxus trusted implicitly with his life. But there was one very large problem: Freed Justine, captain of the Raijinshuu and one of Laxus' oldest friends, was a man.

Growling into his half-full mug, Laxus purposely avoided looking at the back corner of Fairy Tail's makeshift, run-down guild where Freed was studiously going over accounting ledgers with Mirajane. After their return from Tenrjoujima, Fairy Tail's finances had been in such terrible disarray that Makarov had recruited the two mages to try and sort through them. Unable to resist, Laxus took a peek at them, heads bent together, Mirajane pointing out some mistake and Freed sighing in exasperation. Fighting a rising surge of jealousy, Laxus threw back the rest of his drink and pounded the mug down on the bar, causing Kinana to startle and drop the wine glass she was drying.

"You're sure on edge today," Cana commented as she plopped down beside the irate dragon slayer, fifth of rum in hand. After taking a swig, she continued, "Lighten up, my old man got you back in the guild, right?"

Laxus just glowered at the card mage until she shrugged and turned her full attention to the already half-empty bottle in front of her. Kinana finished cleaning up the broken glass, poured another mug of beer for Laxus, then moved down the bar to take Macao and Wakaba's orders.

". . . They sure made a mess of things," Mirajane's lilting voice sighed as she joined Kinana behind the bar, tying on an apron.

"Yes, I'm surprised Fairy Tail did not go completely bankrupt with accounting this disorganized," Freed replied as he slid onto the stool next to Laxus. He looked tired and irritated as he slammed an over-stuffed tote on the counter. "This will take at least a week to straighten out."

The sudden loud noise made Laxus start slightly and look over at his companion. His hands tightened around his mug as he caught a whiff of Freed's favorite mint shampoo, heart jumping into his throat at the sight of his long, green hair and intense turquoise eyes. Their eyes met for a moment, Freed's widening slightly as he registered Laxus' dark mood, before Laxus sharply turned away, took a long chug of his beer, and slammed the mug on the bar again, earning a sharp look from Mirajane. Laxus ignored her.

_What am I?_ Laxus snarled at himself. _A fucking love struck schoolgirl?_ _Freed is a __**man**__. You don't like men._

"Laxus, are you okay?"

Annoyed, Laxus turned and glared at Freed, who was looking up at his friend, concerned. The concern soon turned to hurt as the captain was forced to bear the brunt of Laxus' bad mood. Before Laxus said something he'd probably regret, he noticed a fairly large black smudge of ink on Freed's cheek. Freed's wide, unsure eyes combined with that mark of absent-mindedness was very . . . well, _endearing_.

_So cute,_ Laxus thought, then catching himself in the thought, felt his face and neck turn red in a combination of embarrassment, lust and anger. The thunder dragon slayer was at his limit.

Mirajane, reading the situation perhaps too well, studied Laxus shrewdly before she licked her thumb, leaned over the counter and grabbed Freed's face. "Freed, dear, you've got a smudge." Just as her thumb touched his face, Freed blushed and started blubbering about how unsanitary that was. Laxus had had enough.

Abruptly standing, Laxus slammed down some money on the counter and stalked toward the exit. After a moment of shocked silence, Freed slid off his stool, paid the difference that Laxus owed – he had short changed Kinana by 500 Jewels – and rushed after the thunder god.

"Have a nice day!" Mirajane called, waving and smiling pleasantly. "Good luck!"

Stepping out into the bright sunlight, Laxus squinted and started in the direction of Freed's house, fully aware of the other man following ten feet behind. At that moment, Laxus cursed himself for not finding his own place as soon as he had returned to Magnolia. After his grandfather had banished him from Fairy Tail, Laxus had given up his studio apartment. Because more than seven years had passed, it now had a new occupant and Laxus was without a home. Freed, not wanting his friend to slum it in the decrepit building that was now Fairy Tail's guild hall, had offered Laxus his couch and wouldn't take "No" for an answer. So, for the past week, Laxus had been freeloading on Freed's sofa, his feelings for the Rune Mage changing from those of friendship to something more.

The gloomy aura permeating from the man behind him forced Laxus to glance back, only to see Freed trudging along, lightning-shaped cowlicks drooping, with arms crossed and eyes focused on the ground. _He's cute even when he's pouting,_ Laxus thought. Instead of feeling annoyed at the thought, Laxus instead felt a twinge of guilt – he was the reason Freed was depressed. Sighing in irritation, Laxus stopped and without looking back, waited. Once Freed caught up, they continued walking side by side in awkward silence until they reached Freed's small, pale yellow house in the outskirts of Magnolia.

Switching to single file at the narrow brick walkway that led to the front door, Freed led the way, not needing a key to enter. Being a Rune Mage had its perks – home security being one of them. Because Freed had spelled the entire perimeter of his house so that only he and invited guests may enter, he never had to worry about break-ins and never locked his doors. The interior consisted of a sitting room, full service kitchen, bedroom and connected bathroom. The small sitting room held the old, yet comfortable, black couch that was Laxus' current bed, a small mahogany coffee table and a red, overstuffed armchair. The kitchen was directly connected to the sitting room, only a high bar counter and open doorway separating the two rooms. The bedroom was located at the back and was the largest room in the house, having enough space to fit a full size bed, armoire and vanity without feeling too cramped. Though small, the bathroom had two entrances: one from the bedroom, and the other from the kitchen. Everything in the house was old and worn, yet clearly maintained with great care. It was comfortable and homey, a perfect place for one person.

Suddenly feeling like an intruder, Laxus stood just inside the entrance as Freed hung his jacket on one of the pegs by the door and slipped off his boots, replacing them with his house slippers.

"I'll leave."

Freed froze in place, turning slowly to face the dragon slayer. "Have I done something to anger you, Laxus?" the Rune Mage asked, trying desperately to hide the hurt in his voice, but failing miserably.

Laxus looked away. "No, I just need some space for a bit."

"What did I do wrong?" The Rune Mage's voice wavered as tears welled up in his eyes.

"N-nothing," Laxus stammered, unsure what to do. _Shit, this is worse than making a woman cry!_ he thought, frantically trying to come up with something with which to ease his friend.

"But you've been glaring at me all day. Please tell me! I'll fix it. Don't leave! I promise I'll . . ." Freed trailed off into flustered exclamations of how he'd change so that Laxus would be more comfortable. With each word, Laxus grew more and more panicked. Freed was on the verge of a full-blown meltdown and it was all because Laxus couldn't deal with his emotions. In that minute of listening to Freed's frantic pleas, all the confusion, anger and guilt Laxus had felt throughout the last few days mixed together and exploded into a moment of perfect clarity.

"I like you!" Laxus blurted.

In the middle of his rant, Freed stopped, eyes widening. "Eh?"

"You like me, right? As more than friends," Laxus continued. He had known for a while that Freed harbored feelings for him, but had thought that if he ignored them, nothing would come of it. But now, it seemed Laxus returned those feelings.

At that question, Freed turned a lovely shade of red, too flustered to answer.

"I like you too . . . as more than friends," Laxus repeated, feeling as if a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders just by saying those words.

Freed just blinked at the taller man, frozen in shock at the words he had _never_ expected Laxus to say. "Is . . . I-is this a joke?" he finally managed to speak.

"Tsk, idiot," Laxus replied. "Would I joke about somethin' like this?"

Without giving Freed the chance to reply, Laxus bent down and kissed him. At first, Freed stood frozen in shock, lips immoveable against Laxus'. After a moment, Freed let himself relax into the kiss he'd been fantasizing about for years, and wrapped his arms around Laxus' neck, leaning into the larger man until his back hit the door. With Freed's surrender, Laxus deepened the kiss, his tongue free to explore and conquer his new territory. Only the necessity of air finally broke the two men apart, their arms still wrapped around each other.

Freed looked up at Laxus, eyes heavy with the passion of their first kiss. The look faded as Freed came back to his senses, a blush slowly creeping up his neck to his cheeks and then his entire face.

Laxus snickered, "You're a brilliant shade of tomato."

"Tomato," Freed blustered, stepping back quickly. "Food. Ah . . . dinner. Dinner! I'll start dinner! You must be hungry!" Freed hurried into the kitchen and started banging pots and pans around, opening and closing cabinets and gathering ingredients.

"Yeah, sure." _But not for food. _Laxus snorted and followed, stopping to lean in the doorway. He watched as Freed chopped up some green onions and dropped them in a pot of heating chicken broth. The dragon slayer remained silent as Freed retrieved eggs from the refrigerator and starting cracking their contents into the broth, before venturing, "So, I guess this means I don't hafta sleep on that couch anymore, huh?"

The egg in Freed's hand dropped, hitting the floor with a 'splat,' as his face turned red all over again.

Laxus laughed, truly laughed. For the first time since returning from Tenroujima, Laxus was content. It suddenly didn't matter to him anymore that Freed was a man, only that Laxus was happy here. He was home.


End file.
